Planes tips

My husband is a frequent business traveler, so we're constantly trying to maximize his travel points to pay for some amazing trips for us and our two kids.

International travel is almost back to pre-pandemic levels, according to the just-released list of the world's busiest airports in 2023.

An Austrian Airlines plane sustained some severe damage after crashing into a jet bridge.

Most airliners are struck by lightning at least once a year, according to the National Weather Service. It's less common that such an incident is caught on video.

On Saturday, two Boeing 787s operated by Virgin Airlines and United Airlines zoomed through the air at ground speeds exceeding 800 mph — about 200 mph more than typical.

On Saturday, two flights arrived at their destinations early.

A bathroom break on a flight turned into a nightmare for one passenger who got stuck in the plane's restroom for the majority of his flight, the BBC reported.

A Southwest Airlines passenger described enduring what felt like "Chinese water torture" during a domestic flight as she sat under a constant drip of an unidentified liquid.

A travel influencer sought to lay down some etiquette around overhead bins on planes, arguing that a lot of people get it wrong.

A teen passenger had his shirt sucked off his body when the door plug of an Alaska Airlines plane blew away in mid-air last week.

Things like smoking, touring the cockpit, and using a steak knife used to be commonplace on planes in the 1950s. Today, rules for passengers and cabin crews are more strict.

A Vueling plane flying from Paris to Cairo made an emergency landing last week after a passenger wrote "I love Allah" on a medical form, according to France 24.

An 83-year-old father died on a long-haul Air Canada flight from India to Toronto — but he might still be alive if the crew had listened to his family's desperate pleas and diverted the plane when he began having health problems, his grieving daughter told Insider.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Norm Bour, a 69-year-old nomad who prefers ferry travel. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

Boarding an airplane is inherently awkward.

A passenger who appeared to be asleep but did not wake after a plane landed had died during the flight, apparently unnoticed.

In August 2021, I booked my first solo trip to Europe: A $439 United flight from Cleveland, Ohio, to Madrid, Spain, with a short layover in Newark, New Jersey. 

An American Airlines flight attendant used "psychological tricks" to convince a teen girl there was nothing strange happening as he tried to spy on her in the bathroom, her family says.

When we take trips as a family, my husband and I routinely sit in first class or premium economy while my kids sit in coach. This doesn't make me an irresponsible parent, and it isn't as terrible as it sounds. 

A Qantas passenger said she crawled along the aisle to her seat after a staff member caused her to fall from her wheelchair.

Whether it's disruptive passengers, weather issues, fuel shortages, or medical concerns, commercial flights can often divert or turn around for technical or health-related reasons.